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Good news from the war against cancerBy JIM ROSS and ALEX LEARY © St. Petersburg Times, published May 21, 2001
Chafin, 75, is a former electrical supply salesman. He had non-Hodgkin's lymphoma that required chemotherapy and radiation treatment. He endured the regimen and beat the disease. Then, on the day of his last radiation treatment, Chafin kept an appointment with his urologist. That's when he learned he had prostate cancer. "It was the 22nd of December" 1998, he said. "I didn't have a very good Christmas." But Chafin has beaten that cancer, as well. He is one of the fortunate ones. He took on cancer and emerged the winner -- twice, no less. Sometimes the fight isn't really a fight. Cancer is a formidable opponent and, with no cure yet secured, doctors can do only so much. The patient often loses, frequently in agonizing fashion. But technology and screening tools are improving, in particular those for breast and prostate cancer.
Fifteen years ago, he said, most prostate and breast cancer patients entered the doctor's office with advanced disease. Today only 10 percent are in that category. "It seems to me many of them are cured," Brant said. "I think the statistics will bear that out." Nationwide, 28,000 fewer people will die of cancer this year than did last year, according to the American Cancer Society. Chafin is one of the human faces behind that statistic, which is one of the few positive ones in the often dreary world of cancer research. He still recalls the day of his last radiation treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. He was thrilled about the victory as he left the Florida Regional Cancer Centers in Beverly Hills. "I thought, 'Shoot, I'm out from under the gun,' " Chafin recalled. When he learned about the prostate cancer, at least Chafin knew where to go for radiation treatment: right back to the cancer center and its director, Dr. Jayanth "Jay" Rao. That familiarity was a silver lining around the dark cloud. "It really didn't upset me that much," Chafin said. "As soon as I found out what I had I went back to Jay Rao and he said, 'We'll take care of that.' " And that's exactly what happened. The success confirmed Chafin's already strong respect for Rao and his staff. Like many cancer patients, Chafin became attached to the people who nursed him back to health. "I like the fact that he's patient with you, he's very knowledgeable. He talks open to you, answers all your questions. He listens to what you say," he said. Chafin has seen a cousin die of cancer while in his 60s and a brother-in-law succumb to the disease when he was 75. Still, "I feel upbeat about it. I never feared that my life was in jeopardy. I had confidence in all the doctors that treated me." Didn't that confidence waver after he tempted fate, and won, the first time? Nope. "I believe in predestination," Chafin said. He served with the Navy during World War II and saw combat before age 18. God just hasn't called his number yet. These days, Chafin works in the yard, tinkers with the neighbor's car, putters around the house and spends time with his wife, Dot, who herself has had a skin cancer removed within the past year. (Her doctor, naturally, was Jay Rao.) "I've lived a good life," William Chafin said. Forced to assess lifeCancer has a tendency to do that, to make you assess your life. Phyllis Mengler, 56, of Beverly Hills learned she had breast cancer five years ago. "I never thought about dying before. I always thought cancer hit old people," she said. She had a lumpectomy and underwent radiation, a dual treatment that was as effective as a mastectomy but saved her breast. Each day for the following five years Mengler took tamoxifen, a drug that works against the effects of estrogen, which promotes the growth of breast cancer cells. The side effects could be excruciating. Mengler had trouble sleeping, hot flashes and night sweats. But she never missed taking a pill -- some 1,800 in all. Mengler marked the final pill with a dinner of stuffed flounder and peanut butter pie at Stumpknockers in Inverness. Like any cancer patient, the disease gave her a new outlook on life. "You appreciate all the little things: a sunset, a rainbow, just waking up the next morning." Knowing how short life could be, Mengler bought a Honda Gold Wing, a beefy three-wheeler with a compact disc player, cruise control and wood paneling. "It looked like lots of fun," said Mengler, who had ridden on a motorcycle only once before, 25 years ago in Cape Cod. When the weather is nice, she drives the bike to work at the Floral City Library. Earlier this month, she cruised to Brooksville to attend a cancer support group. Not all happy endingsFor every positive story like Mengler's there are negative stories. Why do some people beat cancer and others don't? "I wish I could say that people who have a good attitude always do better, but that is not the case. Good attitude helps," said Dr. V. Upender Rao, a Lecanto doctor who specializes in hematology and oncology. But cancer and the human body are complex. "We know that every patient with, say, a lymphoma in stage one is not the same," Rao said."We know of some gene that causes the disease, but there are so many other genes that alter or affect the diseases process."
"It's intricacies like that. How severe is the (gene) defect? Some we know and some we don't know. We don't know all these other variables," Rao said. Marie Conrad, 80, is one of the patients for whom the complicated biological and medical processes ended happily. Her breast cancer was diagnosed in 1996, but she is healthy and fit today. Count her among the patients who praise Dr. Jay Rao at the Florida Regional center for helping her beat the disease. She praised his "painstaking" work. But not all survivor stories are quite as uplifting. Fran Watson of Homosassa was diagnosed with leiomyosarcoma, a cancer of the outside muscle of the uterus, in 1988 when she was living near Battle Creek, Mich. Watson, now 49, underwent 38 cobalt treatments. Each session took 5 to 10 minutes. But the side effects were the worst part. "It burned my bladder and my colon, and every time I went to the bathroom I was in extreme pain," Watson said. She survived, but some of those unpleasant side effects still haunt her. And cancer is never far from her mind. "They never tell you that you're cured. They always tell you you're in remission," Watson said. She goes for blood tests once a year. Cancer stripped her immune system, so she's more prone to catching colds. But the lifestyle effect is the worst. She used to love dancing and watching children and keeping an extremely clean house. "They used to really make fun of me because I was so meticulous." Now her energy is greatly diminished. "I feel like I aged 40 years having that done. It hit me so fast. It was so hard. I had been so active," Watson said. "It just took me right down. I can't do probably three-quarters of what I used to do. And it wears on you mentally, because you can't do the things you used to do. "It just takes everything right out of you." * * * Special report: The impact of cancer A dreaded diagnosis (May 20, 2001) Cancer takes its toll on body, spirit, family (May 20, 2001) Minister soothes souls in final days (May 20, 2001) Upbeat, exuberant survivors rally to raise money and spirits (May 20, 2001) A teacher's final lessons for life (May 20, 2001)
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"We're finding cancers in more people at an earlier stage and, hopefully, a more curable stage," said Dr. Timothy Brant, a radiation oncologist in Lecanto.
